FBI Director Kash Patel has defended his decision to join a locker-room celebration with the United States men’s ice hockey team at the Winter Olympics in Milan after videos of him drinking beer, singing and spraying alcohol went viral online and drew criticism from Democratic lawmakers and former officials.
The footage, shared widely on social media late on Sunday, showed Patel in a white USA shirt jumping up and down with players after the American team beat Canada 2-1 in overtime to win the men’s gold medal at the 2026 Games. In one clip, he appears to chug a beer before spraying it across the locker room as the team celebrated.
Patel responded publicly after the videos prompted questions about his judgement and whether taxpayer-funded resources were used for the trip. “Yes, I love America and was extremely humbled when my friends, the newly minted Gold Medal winners on Team USA, invited me into the locker room to celebrate this historic moment,” Patel wrote on social media. He added: “For the very concerned media … Greatest country on earth and greatest sport on earth.”
In an earlier post about the team’s achievement, Patel wrote: “Unity, Sacrifice, Attitude, what it takes to be the best in the world. These men live and breathe it. Now Team USA are gold medal champions, legends standing on the shoulders of giants. Thank you for representing the greatest country on earth, in the greatest game ever created. congrats boys.”
Democratic Representative Jason Crow of Colorado accused Patel of treating the trip like a holiday at public expense, writing: “The grift & corruption is unreal. Your taxpayer dollars funding the FBI Director’s Italian vacation.” Other critics pointed to the FBI’s role in ongoing investigations and security matters in the United States, arguing that the imagery of the bureau’s director partying overseas risked undermining the agency’s credibility.
Xochitl Hinojosa, a former Justice Department spokeswoman, criticised Patel’s conduct in a post that referenced multiple security concerns and investigations. “There was a threat at the president’s residence at MAL, Americans in Mexico are facing major threats by cartel members, Nancy Guthrie is still missing, and our FBI Director thinks he’s a frat bro?!” she wrote on X.
Questions also focused on travel arrangements and the cost of the trip. Patel said he had been in Italy on official business and would pay his own way for any personal activities. An FBI spokesperson, Ben Williamson, said Patel was in Italy on official business and would reimburse the government for any personal use of FBI resources.
Reuters reported that Patel’s social media posts during the trip included photographs of him meeting foreign officials and US personnel involved in Olympic security. Sports Illustrated also cited Patel as posting about a visit to the Milan Joint Operations Center, writing that it was intended to protect “the US athletes, 250,000 US citizens who traveled to Milan for the games, as well as the private sector companies we share information with every day.”
The incident revived scrutiny of Patel’s travel and ethics, after Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee previously alleged that he had misused government resources. Reuters reported that those Democrats accused Patel of using the FBI’s Gulfstream G550 for personal travel, including trips to Scotland for golf, to Pennsylvania to watch his girlfriend sing at a wrestling match, and to a hunting ranch in Texas. Patel has faced repeated criticism in Washington over whether his conduct matches the standards the FBI expects of its agents and senior officials.
The locker-room celebration also became a focal point because it followed one of the most high-profile moments of the Olympics: the United States winning men’s hockey gold for the first time since 1980. NBC Olympics reported that Jack Hughes scored the winning goal with 1 minute and 41 seconds to go in overtime to clinch the title. “Unbelievable game, unreal game by our team,” Hughes said, according to NBC Olympics. “Ballsy, gutsy win. That’s American Hockey right there. That’s a great Canadian team, but we’re USA. We’re so proud to be Americans.”
Dylan Larkin, a central figure for the Americans throughout the tournament, told NBC Olympics after the win: “I hope this will inspire kids to put this jersey on someday, as it’s the best feeling in the world.”
The online backlash to Patel’s celebration included sharp criticism from some social media users. One Reddit user described it as “f**king shameful,” while other commenters questioned whether he had travelled on a government aircraft to watch Olympic hockey. Another user argued in defence of the director’s security requirements, writing that the FBI director is required to use a government aircraft for travel for safety reasons and that it was not inherently unethical.
Patel, 46, became the ninth director of the FBI in February 2025, according to the bureau’s leadership biography. The FBI states he is a New York native who earned a degree in criminal justice and history from the University of Richmond, later completed a law degree, and obtained a certificate in international law from University College London. Before becoming director, he held a range of roles in national security and law enforcement, and has been a prominent political figure in Washington, where his close alignment with President Donald Trump has been a frequent subject of debate during his rise to the FBI’s top job.
The controversy is the latest in a series of politically charged disputes over the FBI’s leadership, a subject that has become increasingly polarised in recent years. Supporters of Patel have argued that a visible display of national pride alongside a winning US team is harmless and that the director’s presence at Olympic security briefings and meetings should be weighed against the celebratory footage. Critics have countered that the images risk diminishing the seriousness of the bureau, particularly when the FBI is regularly required to present itself as a neutral and disciplined institution.
As of Monday, Patel’s office and the FBI had not provided a detailed breakdown of what portion of the Italy trip would be considered personal travel, or how reimbursement would be calculated, beyond Williamson’s statement that Patel would repay any personal use of government resources. UNILAD reported it had contacted the FBI for further comment.